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The Interledger Protocol (interledger.org)
59 points by simonpure on Jan 2, 2022 | hide | past | favorite | 18 comments



Oddly, the Web Monetization spec, probably essential to ILP adoption, doesn't indicate how browsers would contact an Interledger network site.

https://webmonetization.org/specification.html

https://github.com/WICG/webmonetization/issues/195


Interledger doesn't support trustless/noncustodial transactions, and the "mainnet" is like 3 companies without open peering.


Interledger is a clearing protocol and thus has more stringent requirements from a regulatory point of view.

Our goal as a community is still to get there but this is going to take longer. Happy to answer any questions you have


Havent you been reading all the threads here? There is no market for trustless/noncustodial transactions solely because you could do peer to peer transactions in an Oracle™ database with geographically distant replicas that you or anybody else put up, but fortunately only after you ask them nicely and apply for the API key if your use case gets approved after filling out all the routine cybersecurity forms, and its so much faster anyway so surely there is no value for a permissionless system at all. /s


Nobody is going to take this seriously until it very clearly distances itself from Ripple. Chris needs to be kicked off the board and you need a very public press release denouncing the XRP's scheme of fraud.


"Hi, we're Ripple. We pre-mined 100 Billion XRP and gave them to ourselves.

Here's a non-profit to save the world we started. Everyone just needs to buy XRP, and the world will be saved, isn't that amazing? "


Whilst Interledger came out of research of Ripple, it has zero connection with XRP or relies on it or any blockchain for that matter. This comment is disingenuous at best.


Could you please explain why Interledger uses XRP in its marketing,[1] and why Interledger has a co-founder of Ripple (Chris/Christian Larsen, who was sued by the SEC in December 2020)[2] on its board of directors,[3] if Interledger doesn't have any connection to XRP?

[1] https://interledger.org/developer-tools/get-started/overview...: "Using Interledger, you can send XRP to someone who wants to receive ETH, or you can send USD to someone who wants to receive EUR."

[2] https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-338: "According to the SEC's complaint, Ripple; Christian Larsen, the company's co-founder, executive chairman of its board, and former CEO; and Bradley Garlinghouse, the company's current CEO, raised capital to finance the company's business. The complaint alleges that Ripple raised funds, beginning in 2013, through the sale of digital assets known as XRP in an unregistered securities offering to investors in the U.S. and worldwide. Ripple also allegedly distributed billions of XRP in exchange for non-cash consideration, such as labor and market-making services. According to the complaint, in addition to structuring and promoting the XRP sales used to finance the company's business, Larsen and Garlinghouse also effected personal unregistered sales of XRP totaling approximately $600 million. The complaint alleges that the defendants failed to register their offers and sales of XRP or satisfy any exemption from registration, in violation of the registration provisions of the federal securities laws."

[3] https://interledger.org/about-us/: "Chris Larsen, Chairperson of Ripple"


Could you please explain why Interledger uses XRP in its marketing,

Its no secret that Interledger came out as a research project at Ripple, so examples like this our bound to still be in documentation/marketing. But just as XRP is listed, so is ETH, Dollars and Euros. Interledger is a payment clearing protocol where counter parties can settle there positions however they see fit.

DISCLAIMER: I am speaking in my own capacity and must note, I don't know Chris personally and have never spoken to him. These are my own opinions.

* why Interledger has a co-founder of Ripple (Chris/Christian Larsen, who was sued by the SEC in December 2020)[2] on its board of directors*

As stated, Interledger came out of research at Ripple. I believe he serves on the board because he deeply believes in Interledger mission and vision. Which is to create a more fair and open payments system for the world. Yes there is an ongoing case, but our justice system is based on the presumption of innocence. And baring any finality in the case that is how it should be treated.

Commoner thanks for engaging and please do keep engaging, but I want you to know that there is no ulterior motive here. We are honestly just a community of people who are trying to solve a problem. Which is digital payments are still difficult and not affordable for a large number of people.


Just another shitty 'crypto' technology fulfilling a hypothetical usecase that doesn't exist in the real world.

Show me meaningful usage of blockchain/public ledgers, then show me a scenario where you need to bind something between two ledgers.

All this software built is like a Minecraft theme park trying to sell tickets to real people to go on virtual rollercoasters.


Just another shitty 'crypto' technology fulfilling a hypothetical usecase that doesn't exist in the real world.

I'm sorry you read the site and came away with that impression but that is not that case. Interledger is completely agnostic to underlying ledger technologies. It is a payments clearing protocol between participants. Can you please tell me why you believe that to be your impression?

Show me meaningful usage of blockchain/public ledgers, then show me a scenario where you need to bind something between two ledgers.

Again Interledger does not just connect public ledgers. Interledger is a clearing protocol between any system. Do you send payments via ACH, SEPA? Pay with goods with a credit card, Visa or Mastercard? All these use payments clearing protocols. Interledger competes with these technologies in an open and federated manner.

All this software built is like a Minecraft theme park trying to sell tickets to real people to go on virtual rollercoasters. Sell them what exactly? Interledger doesn't have a token or anything to sell people. It is just a technology, much as HTTP and IP.

I would love to engage more, so please feel free to answer and ask questions. Our goal as a community is to foster a more fair and open payments ecosystem for the world.


How is this better than RTP?


Good question. Firstly it’s a matter of reach. How can I as a South African use RTP to pay for a digital good online? I can’t because all RTP systems are designed and used in national systems. That being RTP in the US, SEPA in Europe or EFT in South Africa. The only current global payments mechanism is the card networks really. We aim to be a global payments network like to RTP with account to account payments.

Secondly it’s a matter of access. Most domestic RTP systems are closed to banks. We want to open up to all account holding institutions, whether it’s banks, digital wallets, mobile money or potentially non custodial wallets.

Lastly we want to standardise the APIs so that applications can start building on top of your account. We see a world where you don’t need embedded finance. I should be able to use my current financial account everywhere. Whether that’s in Twitter to send a tip or on shoplift to receive payments directly to my account.


OMG it's like a decentralized decentralized blockchain! There is so much cool tech coming out these days XD


Is there something deeper here, or only Ripple’s attempt to whitewash its reputation after the SEC lawsuit?


It's the underpinning of the Web Monetization effort backed by Mozilla.

https://webmonetization.org

https://grantfortheweb.org


One of the people on the Interledger Foundation's board of directors (Chris Larsen) is the Chairperson of Ripple. 2 of the 3 people listed under the Interledger Foundation's "Our People" are affiliated with Mozilla.[1]

I feel that it was a mistake for representatives of Mozilla and these other organizations to endorse the Interledger Foundation. Coinbase has been restricting XRP from being bought, sold, or traded ever since the SEC sued Ripple Labs just over a year ago.[2]

[1] https://interledger.org/about-us/

[2] https://help.coinbase.com/en/coinbase/getting-started/crypto...


We believe so yes, Interledger is a payments clearing protocol. More akin to to card networks or SWIFT.

The ultimate goal is to allow disparate account holding institutions ( banks, digital wallets, crypto wallets etc) to have an interoperable mechanism for clearing payments between each other. Settlement between these parties is for them to decide.

The next goal for us to to enable a layer on top of Interledger to create an effective global open banking spec, which is called Open Payments[0]. Just a side note, with a backbone of ILP there is many applications that could potentially be built on top. As ILP has decided to take a layered approach to the stack, similar to the internet.

Replying on my phone but happy to answer any questions

[0] openpayments.dev




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